AHMEDABAD/KOCHI: Walnut prices have soared through the roof, rising for the past six to seven months, and guess who is driving it up when other dry fruits are languishing even in the Diwali season? Traders say it is the saffron-clad yoga guru Ramdev! It doesn't matter what the doctors say.

People have swallowed Ramdev's advice that walnut is a remedy for knee pain. His prescriptions had earlier hoisted demand for vegetables like 'lauki', 'karela' and aloe vera. Demand for walnut has been rising for about six months, says Vijay Jain, president of the Jammu and Kashmir Walnut Exporters Association.

"The credit for increase in sale for walnut goes largely to Baba Ramdev," says Dipty Arora of Aman International, a leading walnut trader. Wholesale price of walnut in shell in Narwal mandi of Jammu has surged 17-20 % in the past year to Rs 200-300 a kg.

Similarly, walnut kernel has jumped up to 50% and is selling at prices as high as Rs 1,100 a kg. On an average, 5,000 to 7,500 bags (of 10 kg) of walnuts were arriving from across the state to the Jammu mandi. A similar jump in the price of 'lauki' was seen a few years ago when it rose from Rs 5 a kg to Rs 25 in retail.

"Demand is more than 25% compared to the previous year," says Shyam Sunder Bansal, secretary of the Indo-Afghan Chamber in Delhi. He says it was Ramdev who has been preaching about the goodness of walnut since the past six months.

Apart from prescribing walnuts as a remedy for knee trouble, Ramdev says it lowers cholesterol, boosts memory and leads to optimum health.

"It is not only walnut, but also almonds, figs, raisins which are very good for health if eaten in right proportion," says Acharya Balkrishna, a close aide of Baba Ramdev. "With Diwali approaching, we are advising people to buy dry fruits rather than processed food as gifts. It is good for health and also supports local economy and Indian farmers," said Acharya Balkrishan.

Chandigarh-based orthopedic specialist Dr MP Singh feel that walnuts and other nuts like almonds, pine nut (chilgoza) consumed in proper balance are a good sources of carbohydrates, protein, vitamin E, minerals like manganese, copper, potassium, calcium, iron and good fat. "In holistic treatment, it is good.

Nevertheless, there is no new medical study that proves that walnut, or any other nut, is a cure for knee joint arthritis," he said. The cashew trade is also planning to join the health bandwagon to boost sales. The Cashew Export Promotion Council of India (CEPCI) formed a cashew global council, which has instituted a study in Europe to understand the nutrient profile of cashew.

"The findings point out that cashew helps in reducing or preventing cholesterol-related heart diseases, diabetes and hypertension. We are going for further studies with focus on heart diseases," said Harikrishnan R Nair, chairman of CEPCI.